


Ardour and Almosts

by bannedfrompencils



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, M/M, Madison - Freeform, what even are endings anyways
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-27 23:43:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19800226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bannedfrompencils/pseuds/bannedfrompencils
Summary: The problem with visiting your as-of-recently more-than-a-friend in his hometown is that any awkward chance meeting that could happen, will happen.Set after year 2, when Jack goes to Madison for the fourth of July.





	Ardour and Almosts

**Author's Note:**

> I've never been to Georgia, I don't know any Georgians, and I'm sorry

Jack had spent a lot of time preparing for Georgia.

He is prepared for the distance they have to keep between them in front of Bittle’s family. He is prepared to save his jokes and innuendos for when they are alone. He is prepared to tone down the way he looks at Bittle. He is prepared to hold himself back when all he wants to do is sweep Bitty into his arms and kiss him like his life depends on it.

He is not prepared for the moment Bittle turns to him, eyes wide and urgent, and hisses, “Quick, put your arm around my shoulders!”

They are out for a walk, taking the long way to the farmer’s market and “enjoying the good ol’ Southern weather” which Jack prefers to think of as “being smothered by the air itself” (he is so hot his body seems to have given up on sweating.) But it is worth it for this time out of the house together, talking and trading stories, enjoying each other’s presence in a way that Skype just cannot compare to. Jack is mesmerized by the sunlight filtering through Bittle’s hair, highlighting undertones in the blond, so he does not notice when someone turns a corner and double-takes when he sees Bittle and Jack walking side by side, close enough that their arms are brushing, smiling happily. At least, Jack does not notice until Bittle tells him to put his arm around his shoulders.

Jack does as he is told as casually as possible, and Bittle immediately leans into him and laughs like Jack has just told him the most hilarious joke, subtly nudging Jack in the ribs to get him to play along. Jack takes the hint and chuckles.

“Eric!” The voice that interrupts them has a bit of shock and a lot of curiosity mixed into a heavy Georgia accent.

Bittle turns away from Jack and feigns surprise at seeing the man walking up to them. “Oh, Travis! Hello.” Bittle is using his Southern Pleasantries Voice, which means Jack has no idea whether or not he is actually happy to see this man – Travis. “When did you get back into town?”

“Just on Sunday night. Who’s this?” Travis stops in front of them and smiles at Jack.

Jack smiles back and takes a moment to assess him. He has wavy brown hair and hazel eyes and is almost exactly the same height as Bittle, but Travis is far thinner, almost lanky. Something about the way he holds himself – hands in his pockets, standing with an air of casual confidence – reminds Jack vaguely of Bittle’s first Spring C date. Jack does not miss how Travis is scrutinizing him right back.

“I’m Jack,” he offers politely, holding out the hand that is not resting around Bittle’s shoulder to shake.

Travis’s eyebrows flick up a bit at his accent but his hand meets Jack’s with no hesitation. “Travis,” he returns, as if Bittle had not just used his name.

“He and I went to high school together,” Bittle explains, but the slight strain in the smile he said it with tells Jack there is more to his history with Travis.

Travis’s smile has the exact same strain.

“Right,” Travis says, and Jack thinks this will be the end of the conversation before he remembers he is in Madison. They do not do quick hellos here. “So, Jack,” Travis drawls. Jack takes a deep breath as subtly as possible. “Where’re you from?”

It is not actually a question he gets asked very often. Most hockey players recognize his accent as Québécois – even the American ones – and almost everyone else either already knows who he is or does not really care. Because of this, he is not quite sure how detailed his answer is supposed to be. What he ends up going with is, “Euh, Montreal originally, but I’m living in Rhode Island now.”

“He went to Samwell for college with me,” Bitty elaborates, and Jack grimaces minutely because of course what Travis was _actually_ asking is where and how he met Bittle and Jack should have known that.

“But not anymore?” Travis asks and Jack is still trying to figure out how the people here do that, the thing where they ask a question and it sounds completely innocent but you can tell they are actually trying to find out something more than just the answer to their question, with a look in their eye like they are about to uncover every deep dark secret you were ever foolish enough to think you could hide.

When Travis does it, it is not just weird. It is annoying.

“I just graduated,” Jack says, sounding more pleased than he usually does, almost gloating. “History,” he adds, because that is usually the next question.

“History. Interesting, what’re you plannin’ on doin’ with that?”

“Euh, I’m not actually using my degree right away.” Jack can see Travis bite back a grin and he has to refrain from doing the same because he knows _exactly_ where Travis thinks this is going.

“You’re not?” Travis asks, somehow managing to sound both surprised and like he completely expected that.

“No,” Jack laments, “I was thinking about going after a Master’s or maybe a PhD, but the NHL seemed to really want me, so.” Jack shrugs.

Seeing Travis’s face makes all the training Jack’s been doing this summer worth it.

“The NHL?”

Jack can see the look Bittle is giving him, but judging by the smirk Bittle probably thinks he is hiding better than he is, Jack is pretty sure he is safe to get one more jab in. “Yeah, the National Hockey League. I know hockey isn’t big down here but I think it’s fun, and some really great teams made me offers, so it was kind of hard to turn down.”

Bittle jumps in. “Oh, you shoulda seen the work we had to put in just to help him pick a team!” He laughs again, lightly brushing his hand over Jack’s arm. “Between the spreadsheets and the chalkboards we commandeered...”

Jack chuckles with him, and this time it is real and good. “How much time did you and Shits spend researching stats? Not to mention everything you baked for us.” Bittle just laughs, so Jack addresses Travis again. “Really, I couldn’t have done it without Bitty and our team.”

“Got your back,” Bittle says almost automatically, and even without a mirror Jack can tell that his smile as he looks at his lover has long surpassed friendly, left fond in the dust, and is currently hovering somewhere between dopey and lovestruck.

 _Public,_ Jack’s brain reminds him. _Georgia._

But Jack cannot particularly find it in him to care.

Then Travis interrupts his thoughts. “Bitty?”

Bittle blinks before he realizes what Travis is asking. “Oh c’mon, you know hockey’s all about the nicknames.”

Travis actually takes pause at that. “Yeah, I guess I do remember that.” He is assessing Jack again — or rather, he is assessing Jack and Bittle, together. Jack’s hand shifts ever so slightly down Bitty’s shoulder, turning the bro-y gesture into a more caring one, though only by enough to be just noticeable to someone looking for it. When Travis again meets Bittle’s eyes, Jack feels Bitty relax, and the strain starts to leave Travis’s smile.

“It’s not a very accurate nickname, though, is it?” he asks, his eyes not-quite-subtly passing over the view that Bitty’s tank top makes, and Bittle grins. Jack cannot even blame the guy.

“You know, it ain’t really, but if you saw me in a lineup with some of the boys...” Bittle tells Travis with a mischievous glance Jack’s way. Jack tries so hard to bite back his snicker at the double entendre. He wishes more than ever that Bittle had never banned jokes about eating protein, and Bittle huffs laughingly and swats at him like he can tell exactly what Jack is thinking.

Travis watches them, and if Jack were paying attention to anything besides his lover beside him, he might notice Travis’s hard gaze softening a touch. “Well, I don’t wanna keep you two out in this heat forever, I’m sure you’ve got sights to see. Eric, we’ll have to catch up while we’re both in town.”

“Yeah, we will,” Bittle says, and he sounds like he means it. His parting smile to Travis is definitely real, and maybe a bit grateful.

Travis nods and then they pass each other, Jack’s arm dropping back to his side as they continue their walk.

“So,” Jack says after a moment, after the sound of Travis’s steps have faded behind them. “That was your ex, eh?”

“Oh, no, nothin’ like that,” Bittle says, then pauses a breath, looking seriously at Jack in a way he only started doing after EpiKegster. “Well. Maybe not nothin’. Us two... Nothin’ ever actually went anywhere, nothin’ really even happened at all. But maybe it could’ve, in another life.”

Jack nods. He understands. “Not an ex-boyfriend, but an ex-almost?” Jack says, borrowing a term Lardo had used once and Jack had never forgotten.

It makes Bittle chuckle. “Ex-almost. Yeah, maybe that’s what we were. Not a couple, but an almost.” He is still looking at Jack, thoughtful now. His voice gets softer. “You ’n’ I were nearly an almost.”

“Nearly,” Jack agrees. “But not quite, thank fuck.” Bittle laughs at that, breathy and bashful, and it makes Jack smile, even as he says, “I’m sorry it took me so long to figure it out. I’m trying to be better now, about keeping the important stuff in mind.”

“Oh, and I’m the important stuff, am I?”

Jack hesitates, swallowing down an answer that is far too much when this thing with Bittle is still so new. “You’ve been the important stuff for two years,” he says instead.

Bittle smiles and looks away so quickly that Jack wonders if he is hiding a blush. “I think I know what you mean.”

Jack just grins. He loves the way Bits flirts.

“I’m sorry too,” Bittle says. “For chickening out,” he adds when Jack turns to him with a confused expression. “You were leaving Samwell, all moved out and– Lord, I was just willing to let you go.”

“Aw, c’mon Bittle, you could never have gotten rid of me that easy.”

Bittle’s smile comes back. “Guess not, with you chasin’ after me ‘n’ all.”

“I’d follow you anywhere you want me,” Jack says, and means it so much that he has to follow it up with a chirp. “Even outside in the Georgia summer where it’s so hot I’m actually damp and there’s no way you can still find me attractive. Look, Bits, I’m about to be literally stuck on you.”

“Oh, no, the hot, buff guy I’m seein’ got all sweaty. You’re right, this is the worst.” They are alone for a moment — the only reason they chose to walk instead of hiding out in air conditioning like everybody else (and, Jack is beginning to think, so Bittle can show him up a bit after all the chirps over the past two winters) — and Bittle takes the opportunity to look Jack over appreciatively before continuing on their way. “Besides, I’ve seen you grosser than this.”

“And you still like me anyways.” It comes out way too pleased to be a chirp, and Bittle’s smile turns warm.

“Yeah, Jack. I really do.”

Jack smiles back, and he can tell what Bittle’s waiting for him to say. “’Swawesome,” Jack says instead, laughing at Bittle’s indignant huff.

“Jack Zimmermann, you–”

He cuts off when Jack swings an arm around him again. “I really like you too,” he says, and Bitty hums appreciatively.

“That’s better.”


End file.
